Reuters
• Courtney Rozen
President Donald Trump invested as much as $50,000 in SpaceX in June, according to a public financial disclosure. The investment gives Trump a financial stake in a major government contractor led by Elon Musk, his former adviser.
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Lux Aeterna is targeting the U.S. military market with satellites designed to return from orbit and fly again. The startup says reusable spacecraft could enable the Space Force to deploy, recover and redeploy orbital assets, extending operational flexibility beyond conventional one-way satellite missions.
High activity
President Donald Trump invested as much as $50,000 in SpaceX in June, according to a public financial disclosure. The investment gives Trump a financial stake in a major government contractor led by Elon Musk, his former adviser.
High activity
SpaceX plans to retire Falcon 9, one of the most-flown launchers in history, after bringing its next-generation Starship vehicle into operational service. The transition could materially alter launch capacity, competition and customer options across the commercial launch market.
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SpaceX is set to establish a new rocket-reuse record early Tuesday morning, Aug. 25, during its 100th Falcon 9 flight of the year. The launch will be livestreamed, offering a direct view of another milestone in the company’s high-cadence operations.
CesiumAstro plans to launch its first Element satellite in October, marking a precursor mission for a planned constellation of more than 700 spacecraft. The launch will provide an initial step toward the company’s broader satellite deployment strategy.
High activity
Kepler Communications has begun commercial in-orbit optical data relay services, marking an expansion beyond the smallsat operator’s IoT connectivity business. The launch positions Kepler to provide high-speed data links between spacecraft and ground networks as demand grows for faster space-based communications.
Beyond Reach Labs has unveiled Flarewing, a patent-pending solar-array deployment system designed to fold flat during launch and expand in orbit. The startup says its large deployable structures could enable small satellites to generate substantially more power without requiring correspondingly larger launch configurations.
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